The event involved two categories – character/prosthetic and beauty/fantasy – with eight finalists being selected for each.

Fowlstone competed in beauty/fantasy and took first place, with competitors from Japan finishing in second and third sports.

The theme in her event was “Wildwood Folklore.”

She won $5,000 (US), a trophy and a “lot of makeup,” she said.

Fowlstone started Little Monsters Studio in Abbotsford six years ago.

She has always been a visual artist who enjoyed drawing and painting, but as the mom of four young children, she didn’t have a lot of time to pursue art.

“I started my face- and body-painting business in 2011 as a way to be creative and also bring in extra income. Through that, I found my passion was in body-painting,” she said.

Fowlstone attended her first IMATS convention in 2014, and discovered a love for all makeup and a desire to become a certified professional makeup artist.

In 2016, after her youngest child started school full-time, she enrolled in the makeup program at the John Casablancas Institute (JCI), graduating the following March with awards for overall achievement and perfect attendance.

Since then, she has been hired by JCI as an airbrush-makeup instructor.

Last October, Fowlstone placed second in the Vancouver IMATS makeup competition.

She was also nominated for a 2016 Arty Award, sponsored by the Abbotsford Arts Council.